SUNY Old Westbury Psychology Concepts Mahveshs Case Study

After reading the below background information about Mahvesh, please take 3 of the following concepts that were discussed in Chapter 6 and in the lectures and discuss how a therapist might use them when working specifically with Mahvesh providing examples of what Mahvesh might say or how her background might be discussed in a therapy session to highlight the concepts you chose.

The concepts to use are:

1. Apply the search for meaning
2. Explain how awareness applies
3. Explain how the search for identity balances against relationships
4. Explain how awareness of death applies
5. Explain how being authentic applies
6. Explain how freedom and choices apply
7. Discuss the type and importance of her relationship with her therapist

An example of what is required for this assignment from a different case regarding the concept of a nondirective stance is:

Fred comes into session and begins to discuss his need to control and the anger he displays when he is not in control. He begins to provide an example of an anger outburst that occurred when he was parenting his son. Midway through the example, Fred begins to feel uncomfortable with the conversation and the feelings it is eliciting. Instead of continuing on his train of thought, he goes into a tangential story about how his family had gone on a trip and how much fun his son had on the trip. Instead of pointing out the shift from the original topic or making an interpretation of why he shifted the discussion, I go with him and let him dictate where the session goes. I ask “tell me about how the trip made you feel?” and “what made you think about the trip?” From these questions, I can get a better feel for his subjective experience of this trip and how to better empathize, going where he wants the session to go.

The Case of Mahvesh

Mahvesh is a 22-year-old Iranian American female who came to the United States with her parents when she was 3 years old. Mahvesh attended public schools and is now a senior in college, and she describes herself as “very American.” Her parents, however, hold many of the cultural values with which they grew up in their small village in Iran. Mahvesh says she often feels “caught between two worlds” as she attempts to honor her parents’ traditions while also trying to live her own life.

Recently, this struggle intensified, and Mahvesh entered therapy. She told her therapist about her struggles:

Mahvesh:

My parents want me to marry a man from their village in Iran, a man that I hardly know, but I am in love with a man I met in college. We have been dating for more than a year and I want to marry him. When I try to talk with my parents, my father becomes angry and says that I do not respect him. My mother is more understanding but basically agrees with my father. I try to tell them that arranged marriages are rare even in Iran today but my parents grew up in a rural area and hold a lot of conservative ideas. I love my parents but I want to make my own decisions, especially about the man I marry